INTERVIEW WE ARE TALKING WITH PIOTR GAŁKOWSKI
Company: Divine Acoustics |
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INTERVIEW
Company: Divine Acoustics |
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No 209 October 1, 2021 |
![]() I first encountered the company in 2007 and since then I have been testing almost all of its products on a regular basis, though not too often. First, they were making loudspeakers, then these were joined by HALLEY speaker cables, GRAVITY anti-vibration platform and KEPLER anti-vibration feet. It turns out, however, that all of them were developed while working on the core products of brand’s lineup, that is speakers, to supplement or support the performance of the latter. Mr. GAŁKOWSKI is one of those designers who pay attention to every, literally every detail of the construction. And every one of them is equally important. WOJCIECH PACUŁA talks with PIOTR GAŁKOWSKI, the owner of Divine Acoustics about this "obsession" of his, about the history of the company, and, obviously, also about the Bellatrix speakers. The gentlemen are accompanied by Mr. MARCIN, a friend of the designer and the first reviewer of all his products. ♦ WOJCIECH PACUŁA Could you please remind us how did it all start with Divine Acoustics? ![]() I made my first loudspeakers in primary school and their cabinets were made of… cardboard. I installed drivers from some radio in a cardboard box and realized they sounded differently. And so I knew I could do something about it. I took audio seriously on while I was a student even though my education was not related to that topic. WP So what did you study? Anyway, I sent the first speakers to you in 2007 - and we can assume that this is when official story of the Divine Acoustics starts. It was a PROXIMA I model, to be exact. WP These loudspeakers completely surprised me - both with their appearance and sound. It was completely different from anything else available on the market at the time, and it was thoroughly thought out. ![]() In fact, the pair of speakers you reviewed was the first and only pair that I manufactured then - apart from the prototypes. I just couldn't afford more. When in 2013 I sent you the PROXIMA v3, it was right after my workshop burned down. The speakers were actually made in a small room, a little smaller than the one we are in right now. At that time, I could afford to make two pairs. WP Why did the workshop catch fire? Over the years, I have sold over 100 pairs of all Proxima models. They were shipped to places all over the world, including Asia. And as for Asia - the biggest problem was finding a company that would export them there. It turned out that the goods flow was a one-way one and people were surprised when I wanted to ship something the other way, to Asia. They could transport anything in any quantity from there, but shipping to China? - Nobody knew how to do it. Once I got an email from my dealer in Shanghai who had my speakers, even though I didn't even know I had a representative there ... It turned out that he got them from my Hong Kong distributor. ![]() WP At that time, you actually had a regular job, didn’t you? The pandemic changed a lot in my life, I had time to think about what to do next. In fact, the Bellatrix model was supposed to be ready before the pandemic, but when it started everything slowed down, almost crashed, my daughter was born and than another one, so I had time to work out all the details of the new model without any rush. Since so much has changed, I decided it was a good time for a fresh start. So Electra and Proxima are slowly "retiring", I will only sell them until the component stock is exhausted. The first model in the new era is the Bellatrix. The Keppler feet and the Gravity platform, which you tested in 2013, will be still offered - it turned out to be quite popular among customers. I already have a project of a new platform in my head, as well as of a rack, but it takes a lot of time and money to convert the ideas into a product :) So far I have invested a lot in Bellatrix speakers, because the components for them are not cheap. WP So let's say a few words about these speakers. The mere preparation of the documentation for this product - which is over 100 pages long - and building the first prototype took me over a year. ![]() WP But that's probably how it should be done, shouldn’t it? I personally assemble each pair, break it in and listen to it, comparing it to the reference loudspeaker. It takes a long time, but it has to be done that way to achieve proper results. At the beginning of September, I am starting to put together the next pairs of Bellatrix and the pair that I will start with will not be ready until November, after three months. WP What drivers do you use in Bellatrix? Everyone uses the Scan-Speak Revelator drivers. One of the reasons why I was interested in ETON, however, was that I wanted to distinguish myself from other manufacturers. I didn’t want to present yet another Scan-Speak-based loudspeaker - these are excellent drivers, but one can find them in many, many loudspeakers. I talked to a representative of ETON and ordered some drivers to try them out, to compare them with the Scan-Speak. I knew from the very first time that this was IT. |
![]() WP What makes the "new paper" by ETON new? Let's take a look at the structure of a car body - if a car has a large front hood, there are embossments on it. This gives it more rigidity. It is similar with the diaphragm - it is stiffer, firstly, and secondly, it is a bit thicker than if it were flat, so there will be no unwanted resonances on the perimeter - and you can hear its advantages. However, this is not a flawless diaphragm, which is why it took me so long to design the right crossover for it. ![]() Its problem is quite strong resonance at 5-6 kHz, which is difficult to handle. You can hear it as a kind of "rustling", not a very nice effect ... So it was necessary to develop a completely new crossover for this driver, which took me a lot of time. However, I managed to virtually completely eliminate this resonance. WP Despite the fact that it is a 1st order crossover, i.e. theoretically with a fairly gentle slope. WP The tweeter is decoupled with a similar arrangement as in the Keppler feet - does this type of solution really help? It came from my driver testing methodology. I put them on the table in front of me and listen to them without cabinets. Very quietly, obviously, but you can still hear everything. It turned out that it was extremely important for the tweeter what it was placed on. Since I heard the difference even without cabinets and crossover, i.e. elements introducing distortions, between the left and right drivers fed with a mono signal, I knew that there was something to it. ![]() WP Bellatrix took a long time to build, but not being rushed was actually a good thing, wasn’t it? Thanks to this, I listened to every resistor’s and capacitor’s lead, every coil - really. Anyway, I cut the leads with high accuracy, to a millimeter - such tiny details make difference and can be heard. If someone asks if they can use a Mundorf instead of a Jantzen capacitor, my answer is no. Not because Mundorf is bad and I don't like it, but because replacing it causes changes that don't "match" with my design. And I do not know if it will be properly soldered after replacement - meaning properly set. ![]() I struggled for the whole year with the damping of these loudspeakers. There is no soft damping inside - there are only hard mats that I found and chose based on listening sessions. They, too, are weighed to the thousandth of a gram (0.001 g). To ensure full repeatability, I made assembly tables that allow me to assemble each cabinet in the same way. WP Do the drivers need to be paired so precisely as well? WP You have designed and made your own speaker terminals. They look like Cardas ones - am I right? ![]() The second thing is related to the design of the Bellatrix loudspeakers - everything is directional in them. Each cable, capacitor, coil and resistor are listened to and on based on that I chose the direction of the current flow. When I started connecting various terminals, each one introduced something to the sound. Ideally, I wouldn’t use any. I didn't want to do that, so I started experimenting. It was the seventeenth prototype that finally worked as expected :) WP But let's be honest - the idea to tighten both spades with a centrally located knob comes from Cardas. One clamp for both spades results from the fact that I did not want to use many moving parts and I wanted to minimize the number of parts that come into contact with the signal. Even the nuts that tighten the spades are made of polyamide, not metal. I make the clamps myself. ![]() WP Since Bellatrix has been in development for so long, when will the next models be ready? I've always wanted to do something "for people" and I've been successful. In Bellatrix I applied everything I've learned and it has been taken to the extreme, so they have to cost so much (in fact, they should cost twice as much if we stick to the standards of large companies - editor's note). But it gave me the knowledge that I can apply to cheaper loudspeakers with less money. It makes no sense to make a loudspeaker that costs a fortune - it’s better to do something that will please many people. WP Thank you for your time! |
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